Wintry Nails with Snowflake Stickers

It hasn't even been cold lately, not sure where the inspiration was for this.  This is one of those manicures that look much much better at a distance, not super macro friendly.  I had one with it, though!

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I'm patiently waiting for my thumbnail to grow more, too. I've never broke a thumb nail before, was so bummed when it happened. And I don't even know HOW it happened!

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For this mani I sponged on China Glaze Dance Baby and Seaspray with which made this purple-y base you're seeing.  Then I sponged on some China Glaze Frosty (one of my all time faves!), added dots with my dotting tool using Frosty again and Sally Hansen Whirlwind White. I had ordered these stickers from Born Pretty over the summer, was fun to get to use them! So many shapes and styles of snow flakes.

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LOL, I tried some nail art. Promptly removed and replaced.

Sally Hansen Salon Effects Aflorable

So I've worn a handful of the Salon Effects and I decided to blog about this one because I had fantastic results with it.  I've had a total of 5 sets I think, and this is the first to actually impress me.  Not necessarily because of the design, but because it finally lived up to all of the rave reviews I've heard about it.

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I'm thinking my positive experience with time around is due to wearing a base coat with it.  I attempted it in the past, but you cannot reposition at all with a base coat (at least in my experience).  The first time I tried with a different set, I realized you couldn't reposition with a base coat, so I removed it and finished application with out.  The base coat I used (Orly Bonder) really really stuck the nail strip to the nail, so if you tried to fix it, it would tear.  I figure at the price these things are, that wasn't the best approach.

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I went a bit slower this time and although I did mess up a couple strips,  I had enough to complete the manicure. I actually got two full manicures out of one set, and I also got the set for about $6 thanks to K-Mart going out of business.  I don't like the price of these things, they're still $10 most places, but I do see them occasionally for $8 or $9 - although for only 2 manicures, I'm still not crazy about the price.

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This time around, these things stuck!  Through work, showers and hair washing, not a single chip.  Just some wear, which has to be expected. I'd also like to note that on my index and thumb, those nails are naturally a bit wonky in shape, so if there is any irregular gaps it's my fault, not the strips.

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I took the macro close up underneath on Thursday evening, I applied these on Sunday evening. It's unheard of for anything to last this long and this nicely on me!  This is NO topcoat, only base coat. I find when I use top coat on these, it makes them too thick and I'm tempted to peel them off.

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Blank Slate Nails Part II

I had so much fun with my rainbow zebra nails I wanted to give the blank canvas style mani another try.  This time I chose random polka dots in summery colors for my design.

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This is the final product but it didn't always look so circusy!

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I started with Orly Bonder and used 2-3 coats of Sally Hansen Whirlwind White and sealed it with OtD.

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Then I started adding dots with my dotting tools. I used one large end and one tiny end of the dotting tools to create a stylized gradient effect.

For the dots, I used KleanColor Mango, KleanColor Bikini Green, Brucci JT's Ocean Blue and Sally Hansen Lightening.

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I started with big green and yellow dots. I used the smaller dotting tool for the blue and orange.  I also made sure that the edge of my nail was covered to help along the gradient effect.

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Blank Slate Nails Part I

Blank slate nails! They're like a canvas screaming for some color. I wouldn't wear a regular stark white polish on its own as it looks like White-Out but I would use a stark white for a base for some fun designs!

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This is a blank slate, just screaming for something to be done! I started with Orly Bonder and used 2-3 coats of Sally Hansen Whirlwind White and sealed it with OtD.  Looking at my white nails just gets the gears turning!

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Rainbow zebra stripes? Sure! I used plate BM-223 and a few different colors to do this.  KleanColor Mango, Sally Hansen Lightening,  China Glaze Fuchsia Fanatic and KleanColor Bikini Green.  I did diagonal stripes on the plate with the polish to get some more fluidity in the design.

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It kind of reminded me of Fruit Stripe Gum. It's obviously not a direct take on it, but it made me feel like Fruit Stripe Gum and Lisa Frank had a party on my nails.

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Overall I think its a sunny, fun, summery mani that doesn't take much effort. I may try this with other full-nail images from my plates. What do you think about it?

Gradient Nails

Soooooooooo I'm not quite sure what is about gradients and my inability to do them nicely, but I pretty much cannot create a subtle effect with multiple colors. Maybe it was my color choice.  After looking at this when I was done, I thought it might've been a better idea to have orange in the middle instead of a pink.  If I did that, maybe the color change would've been more subtle and effective.

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I built this on top of yesterday's Revlon Lemon Fizz manicure - FYI, the bumps are still visible even with all the extra layers of polish.

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I did a layer of Orly Basket Case (one of my favorites!) and then for the darkest color, I used China Glaze Ahoy! Like I said before, I think it would've been more gradual had I done an orange and then maybe Basket Case.  It's a visually rough transition from pink to yellow.

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I added a layer of Sally Hansen Diamonds for extra sparkle and sealed with Brucci Nail Dryer. I mentioned in a previous post that Brucci Nail Dryer is their version of a QDTC but it's not spectacular enough for the $5 price tag. However, I've got it so I'm trying to use it up.

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Sally Hansen Hard Lemonade

Another yellow for you guys! I just looooooooooove yellow. It's so happy, sunshiney. I can't wear it in clothing as it washes me out but I'll wear it on my nails.  I always overlook Sally Hansen because I've seen them a thousand times but I'm glad I took a second look at Hard Lemonade.

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This is four coats (can't expect much from a yellow) over Orly Bonder sealed with Out the Door.  When I first used it, it was super runny but from leaving it open to paint my nails, it thickened a bit, I think.  I was able to do only three coats on my right hand.

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There is a super subtle shimmer in here.  You can't see it very well at first but once you know it's there, you can't not see it.

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Revlon Royal & Sally Hansen HD Mani

I found some Sally Hansen HD polishes that I've wanted forever and couldn't wait to wear them! I layered two different ones over Revlon Royal for this manicure which I wore for THREE days. Unheard of!

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The layering goes as follows:
-CND Stickey
-2 coats of Revlon Royal
-1 coat of SH HD DVD
-1 coat of SH HD LCD
-1 coat of Out the Door

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Sally Hansen HD DVD is a bluish purple-y duochrome like glass fleck.  Sally Hansen HD LCD is a pink based glass fleck with hits of a bright green duochrome.  They played nicely together but were incredibly hard to capture.

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You can see some of the duochromeyness (not a word!) in these pictures, but it really was MUCH more beautiful in person.  It leaned from blue to pink, which was really pretty.

I did something SUPER FUN YAY with this mani, keep an eye out for an upcoming post!

Sally Hansen Loyal Lavender & Pretty Petunia

I have more lavender for you :D  My BFF Britty sent this one to me because she knows I LOVE pastels.  Sally Hansen Loyal Lavender has a pink contrasting shimmer to it so it was more than just a pastel, it's a shimmery one!

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This is three coats over CND Stickey sealed with Out the Door.  It's pretty isn't it?  More suitable for springtime than winter, so I'll have to bring it out again then.

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You can really see the pink shimmer in the flash picture.  After wearing this for a day I wanted to jazz it up so I put one coat of Sally Hansen Pretty Petunia over it.  It's a gorgeous glass flecked baby pink and it played so nicely with Loyal Lavender.

It's really subtle but it added lots of extra sparkle that was eye-catching when I moved my hands.  Cute that both names have floral connotations.

SH Salon Effects Plus CVS Mega Haul!

Since CVS is having crazy sales this week I thought I'd give the Sally Hansen Salon Effects another whirl.  My previous attempt and experience with them left a lot to be desired.  I swore to myself I wouldn't pay full price for these again and I didn't! I got Skinny Jeans for $2.62!  Even if they were always that price, I still wouldn't buy them regularly. Maybe.

Cutesy!

I was more patient this time, and warmed up my nails before applying the strips by rubbing my nails and then I held it on and pushed it down for a while.  I followed the instructions exactly and about 6 hours later (which is now) I have a chip or two and some tipwear. WTF. How do people wear these for 10 days?!  My former roommate got WEEKS out of hers, but I put them on her!  So I'm doing it right. My nails hate me.

So I don't know what my problem is.  They stick on just fine, but the tips wear so easily, and as I said before, chip as well.  I only used 6 strips for both of my hands, maybe 7. but it comes with 16, so I'll do yet another experiment with the product that refuses to love me.  Gosh my nails and SH Salon Effects hate me too.

But at least I was able to ruin someone else' day, or so it seemed.  The cashier at CVS asked me how my day was, and I said good how was yours? And he replies: It was pretty good, but now I feel short.  Prepare for a capslock rant: LOOK KID, I GET IT, I'M TALL, I'M TALLER THAN MOST WOMEN BUT I'M THAT THE TALLEST WOMAN IN THE HISTORY OF EVER. So anyways I laughed it off and he asked me if I liked being tall and I said yes, there just isn't that many tall men to date.  I also said the air is better up where I am, too. So I am happy to have a hand in having his day going from "pretty good" to "feeling short". What a durp.

So yea I was at CVS and bought some stuff! YAY! STUFF.

From left to right:

- Thinking of Blue
- Fairy Teal
- Diamonds
- Luminous Tulips (..what?)
- Cherry Red
- Whirlwind White

From left to right:

- I Pinky Promise
- Showtime
- Creamcicle (spelled that way)
- Twilight Nights
- Catch a Falling Star

Skinny Jeans - Teal With It

Some make up for cheap! :D

 I spent about 30$ for ALL of this!

Sally Hansen Be-Jeweled

IT'S SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO PRETTY.

What a glitter bomb!  This one is densely packed with glitter and the way it dries reminds me of China Glaze It's Alive! Which is good, because I love that one.  The purple really caught me eye. The Gem Crush collection has lots of pretties but they're a bit too pricey for me, especially for a Sally Hansen.  I didn't realize until I walked out of the store that it was about $7.50.  I have a problem with paying retail but it was just so pretty that I didn't have the heart to return it.

This is 2 coats of Be-Jeweled over CND Stickey, however, my thumb has a third coat because I noticed a bare spot.  Take notice when applying this one because I didn't catch it until it was in natural sunlight.  I then topped it with two coats of OTD and it was still gritty.  I made a trip to Sally's to finally try out Gelous.  When I got home I put one coat of Gelous on and then another coat of OTD.  Needless to say, especially with how glitters do not sit on my nails very well, it sheeted off within 12 hours.

I love, like really love, the pink sparkles among the purple.  Two of my favorite colors in glitter form is just about all I can ask for.  I noticed with my bottle as well as all of the ones I've seen on displays lately, that the glitter settles big time.  There's about 1/4 of the bottle (at the top) that is the clear base and the glitter settles to the bottom, so remember to shake before using.

Fresh Paint Eggshell & SH Glass Slipper

I did a layered mani with Fresh Paint Eggshell underneath Sally Hansen Glass Slipper.  So wintery and snow-like, click to enlarge on these to see the detail!

There is the MOST subtle white shimmer in Eggshell.  It's a pretty unique color being a sheer, jellylike white with the shimmer.  I'm pretty sure I didn't capture the shimmer on camera but I assure you, it's there.  This is 3 coats over CND Stickey, no TC.

It just looks so squishy and shiny.  I got this at Five Below for $2 but they're also sold for 3 for $5.  The bottle is square and reminds me of the Color Club bottles, which I love.

Then I added SH Glass Slipper which is a white flakie.  It looks so icy in the bottle, love love love.

That is just one coat of SH Glass Slipper; it's densely packed and I like that.  I sealed with one coat of OTD and between the two polishes, it was such a shiny, pretty manicure.  Definitely perfect for winter!  I bet it'd look crazy with ChG Party Hearty over it, too!

Sally Hansen Prisms: Purple Diamond + Guest Nails!

I am so happy to finally own Purple Diamond!  This color is beautiful and it's really hard not to stare at my nails.  It's such a happy polish.

 This is 3 coats of Purple Diamond over CND Stickey and topped with NYC Grand Central Station Quick Dry Top Coat - which is really good, especially for $1.99!  This polish has a divine formula.  Three thin coats, dries quickly (as holos do) and was easy to apply.  I'm not sure on wear length though.

Look at the rainbows!

 

 

Macro nail shot - DROOL.

My friend Coryn is going to a concert this week and wanted nails to suit to the event.  She chose China Glaze Haunting with a white star konad accent.

I did two coats of Haunting over a CND Stickey and sealed it with a coat of Out the Door.  I used Konad Special White for the stamping. She was so excited!  I love doing my friend's and family's nails - it makes me so happy to be able to do something nice for them!  It also helps me mentally justify having so many bottles.  "SOMEONE might need this one day!" Hey, whatever works, right? :D